As long as Robby Pruitt is on the sidelines for the Williston football team, the Red Devils are a threat in the FHSAA’s Rural classification.
Following back-to-back unbeaten regular seasons, Pruitt added a run to the state semifinals in his third season as head coach in 2024. He is now just four wins away from becoming the first coach in America to win 200 games in two different states.
Cliff Harrell, who was the defensive coordinator at Chiefland, takes over for Adam Gore as head coach of the Indians. He is one of three new coaches in the Tri-County area, joining Steven Hall of Dixie County (Cross City) and Bryant Frye of Trenton.
The first regular-season high school football game for the Sunshine State Athletic Association (SSAA) is on Aug. 15, followed by the FHSAA regular season openers on Friday, August 22.
Here is a look at my top football game each week in the Tri-County area (Levy, Gilchrist and Dixie counties) this fall.
Friday, Aug. 15
Bell at Oak Hall, 7 p.m.
Last meeting: Bell 42, Oak Hall 21 (Aug. 16, 2024)
In the first meeting between the two teams in five years, the Bulldogs capitalized on turnovers and mistakes to build a 21-0 lead. After the Eagles tied it, the Bulldogs scored the final 21 points.
Following a 2-8 season in 2023, Bell rebounded to win nine games and advanced to the SSAA Atlantic 1A championship game. After a one-year hiatus, R.J. Fuhr is back for his second stint as head coach of the Eagles.
“It’s always a good game with Oak Hall,” said Bell coach Joey Whittington, who enters his 13th season. “With R.J. coming back, I know they will be well-coached going into that game. It helps kick off the season since that counts as a regular-season game.”
Friday, Aug. 22
Chiefland at Williston, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Williston 10, Chiefland 0 (Nov. 15, 2024)
This is a rematch of last year’s first-round FHSAA Rural playoff game. Chiefland defeated Williston, 18-10, in the regular season opener on Aug. 23 but lost at home to the Red Devils in the regional quarterfinals.
“In-county rival,” said Harrell, who was previously the defensive coordinator. “Coach Pruitt has done an amazing job at Williston. They’ve got some tough kids. They play hard. They’re going to be physical. They’ll be fast. They’re going to be well-coached. Right out of the gate, that’s going to be a good test for our guys to see where we’re at.”
Friday, Aug. 29
Trenton at Dixie County (Cross City), 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Dixie County 52, Trenton 22 (Nov. 29, 2024)
The Suwannee River rivalry continues. Following a rivalry game at Bell in Week 1, the visiting Tigers go on the road again for a matchup of first-year head coaches.
“All of my rivals are on the road,” said Frye.
Steven Hall takes over for Ric Whittington, who led the Bears to the FHSAA Rural Invitational Tournament state championship game last season.
Friday, Sept. 5
Bell at Branford, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Bell 14, Branford 13 (Sept. 6, 2024)
After a 40-0 loss to Branford in 2023, the Bulldogs edged the Buccaneers by one point in last year’s game behind the running of Landin Williams (23 carries, 118 yards, 1 TD). It should be another good year for Williams, who rushed for 1,981 yards and 20 touchdowns as a sophomore.
The victory snapped an 11-game losing streak in the series. It was the first time that the Bulldogs had defeated the Bucs since a 22-6 win on Nov. 6, 2015. Bell hasn’t won back-to-back games in the rivalry since winning three in a row from 2011-2013.
Bell (SSAA) and Branford (FHSAA Rural) were state playoff teams last year.
Friday, Sept. 12
Chiefland at Lafayette (Mayo), 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Chiefland 38, Lafayette 20 (Sept. 13, 2024)
This is another matchup of postseason teams. The host Hornets will be led by quarterback Tywan Williamson, who threw for over 1,700 yards with 24 touchdowns with only three interceptions as a junior last year. He also averaged 9.2 yards per carry.
However, the Indians’ defense held him to under 100 yards passing and just 33 rushing. Meanwhile, rising seniors Matt Goodale and Jon Adams combined for 289 yards on the ground.
Chiefland will look for a repeat performance to extend its winning streak to five in the series.
Friday, Sept. 19
Trinity Catholic (Ocala) at Chiefland, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Trinity Catholic 49, Chiefland 13 (Oct. 24, 2008)
This will be the first meeting between the Class 1A Celtics and the Indians in 17 years and just the sixth meeting all-time. The Celtics have dominated the series, with the closest margin of victory being 24 points in 2007.
Clint Hart, a former NFL and South Sumter (Bushnell) player, replaces John Brantley at Trinity Catholic, who is now the head coach at Forest (Ocala).
Friday, Sept. 26
Trenton at Chiefland, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Chiefland 39, Trenton 6 (Nov. 4, 2024)
A key game for these neighboring counties and a matchup of first-year coaches. It’s a big rivalry game for both.
“I think in the 90s, Dixie County was the big rival, and if you went to school (Chiefland) in the 2000s, it was Trenton,” said Harrell. “Honestly, both of them, I would say, are big rivals to people in Chiefland. The boys always get fired up because they know a lot of those guys. The teams that are less than 20 miles away are always going to be your rival. I’ve been on both sides of those types of games. I’ve won some and I’ve lost some.”
Chiefland has won seven in a row against the Tigers, including a forfeit victory during COVID-19 (2020), while Trenton won the previous eight.
Friday, Oct. 3
Dixie County (Cross City) at Chiefland, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Chiefland 48, Dixie County 0 (Oct. 4, 2024)
After a 19-18 loss at home to Chiefland in 2023, the Indians got revenge in a big way in with a dominating performance in Cross City. They held the Bears to just 23 yards on the ground and rushed for 238 yards for an average of 9.5 yards per carry.
Chiefland has won three of the last four in the series.
“I think we’re looking forward to Chiefland probably the most,” said Dixie County senior linebacker/running back Lukis Medlin. “I definitely feel like everyone is feeling very strongly about that because of the rivalry.”
Friday, Oct. 10
Branford at Trenton, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Branford 34, Trenton 20 (Oct. 4, 2024)
Over a 12-year period from 2010-2021, Trenton dominated the series. However, last year’s 34-20 victory by the Bucs extended Branford’s win streak to three in a row in the series.
The three leading rushers for the Tigers in that game, Alex Henry, Brant Bivens, and Jackson Gentry, who combined for over 160 yards, are back. Plus, the game will be at home.
It will be a special night in Trenton as the state champion Trenton softball team will be honored and will receive their championship rings.
Friday, Oct. 17
Lafayette (Mayo) at Trenton, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Lafayette 47, Trenton 0 (Oct. 18, 2024)
The visiting Hornets were the No. 9 seed in last year’s FHSAA Rural Semifinals and won a wild 43-42 game at No. 8 seed Cottondale before falling at eventual state runner-up Hawthorne the following week. Lafayette…
Trenton will look to snap a 4-game losing streak in the series. However, over the last 20 years, Lafayette only leads the series 10-9.
It’s also the 10-year reunion of the 2015 state championship. Former coach Andrew Thomas and members of the Tigers’ title game will be honored.
Friday, Oct. 24
Williston at Newberry, 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Newberry 28, Williston 14 (Oct. 25, 2024)
Both teams made deep playoff runs last year. The visiting Red Devils advanced to the Rural state semifinals and Newberry made it to the Class 2A regional final.
Before Pruitt arrived in Williston, the Newberry football team was 8-1 in its previous nine games against the Red Devils. Williston defeated Newberry, 42-19, in Pruitt’s first season in 2022 behind a relentless rushing attack and used a Statue of Liberty play call with 47 seconds to play to stun the Panthers, 24-22, in 2023.
Newberry got back in the win column with a 28-14 win last year as senior quarterback Collin Dunmore threw for 193 yards and three touchdowns. Dunmore is gone but the Panthers have plenty of weapons back, including 1,000-yard rusher Kaleb Woods and wide receiver Hayden Moore, who finished just 18 yards shy of a 1,000-yard season.
Friday, Oct. 31
Chiefland at Union County (Lake Butler), 7:30 p.m.
Last meeting: Chiefland 30, Union County 29 (Nov. 1, 2024)
After the host Tigers won six in a row in the series from 2008-2020, the Indians have won the last two, including last year’s narrow win in Chiefland. The Indians, who scored 16 points in the fourth quarter, rushed for 211 yards and held the Tigers to just 69 yards on the ground.
Three big contributors in that game, Jon Adams (3 carries, 55 yards), Matt Goodale (17 carries, 53 yards), and Demorri Sweet (8 carries, 34 yards), are back for the Indians.
“Chiefland is a team the players want to play because they beat Union last year during the regular season,” said Union County interim coach Lamar Waters.